Kent F. Gaugler, In Accident

Kent F. Gaugler, who owned and operated his own business, Live Wire Welding in East Hampton, for almost 30 years, died on Monday less than 48 hours after being critically injured in a one-vehicle crash on Three Mile Harbor Road in Springs. He was 49.
Mr. Gaugler was driving one of his Harley-Davidson motorcycles at about 1:30 a.m. on Sunday when he apparently lost control of it and crashed into a utility pole near Gann Road.
“He loved his Harleys and the freedom they gave him,” his wife, Karen Gaugler, said Tuesday. He owned three of them.
Mr. Gaugler lived in Springs. Despite having grown up in Montauk, “He wasn’t a beach guy,” his wife said. “He loved fishing.” He had a fondness for the Montauk Lighthouse, too, and built the railing atop it.
But most of all, Mrs. Gaugler said, he loved spending time with his wife and children. He coached the Little League girls softball team for two years.
The Gauglers, who were married in 2001, had three daughters, Morgan, Riley, and Wren. Mr. Gaugler had two older children from a previous marriage, a daughter, Thea, and a son, Nolan.
Mr. Gaugler was born at Southampton Hospital in 1962 to the former Gail Bimson of Montauk and Frank Gaugler, now of Bradenton, Fla.
After attending East Hampton High School, he enlisted in the Marines, from which he received an honorable discharge in 1981.
In addition to his wife, children, and parents, he is survived by two sisters, Kim Gaugler of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and Dawn Mihocko of Hyde Park, N.Y., and a brother, Wayne Gaugler of Southampton.
“He didn’t want a service,” Mrs. Gaugler said. He wanted his ashes to be spread near the Lighthouse, a wish that Mrs. Gaugler said she would follow through on at a date in the near future.
Donations in Mr. Gaugler’s memory have been suggested to Kiwanis International, 3636 Woodview Trace, Indianapolis 46268.
A service for Kent Gaugler of Springs, who died on May 7 as a result of injuries from a motorcycle crash the previous day, will take place at Turtle Cove in Montauk on June 2 at 5 p.m.